Coach Cheryl Burnett, right, and guard Jackie Stiles, left, helped put Lady Bears basketball on the map.
Southwest Missouri State guard Jackie Stiles, left, is presented with the game ball by her coach Cheryl Burnett during a ceremony honoring Stiles for setting a new NCAA career scoring record during a game against Creighton Thursday, March 1, 2001, at the Hammons Student Center at Springfield, Mo.
AP file photo

Jackie Stiles holds her head in her hands after missing a free throw with 6 seconds left in the game which would have tied Indiana in the second round of WNIT action in this 1998 file photo.
News-Leader file photo

Southwest Missouri State's Jackie Stiles, right, is conforted by her coach Cheryl Burnett late in the final moments of their 81-64 loss to Purdue during their 2001 NCAA Women's Final Four semifinal game in St. Louis, Friday, March 30, 2001.
AP file photo

Tammi Blackstone, left, and Kiersten Miller celebrate their first team all-tourney selections as SMS's Jackie Stiles, right, waits for the rest of the selections to be announced.
News-Leader file photo

SMS coach Cheryl Burnett shows Jackie Stiles and the rest of the Lady Bears team what she expects out of thier defencive game against Notre Dame in the first round of the NCAA tournament at Texas Tech.
Christina Dicken/News-Leader

SMS's Jackie Stiles celebrates after sinking her first of two free throws with no time left on the clock to give the Lady Bears a two point win over Maine at Hammons Student Center.
News-Leader file photo

Jackie Stiles stopped to talk to Melody Howard who was picking up her luggage at the Springfield Airport after a business trip to Dallas, before the Lady Bears left on their trip in Newark.
News-Leader file photo

Jackie Stiles makes her entrance as fireworks light up the court as the Portland Fire starts its season opener against the Minnesota Lynx in the Rose Garden Arena in Portland, Ore., Thursday, May 31, 2001.
John Klicker/AP

After a recent game, Jackie Stiles stops to sign the T-shirt of a 2-year-old admirer, Niekie thomas. She's signed everything from basketballs and shirts to photographs. the strangest: a forehead.
File Photo

Jackie Stiles, right, gets embarassed while teammate Tara Mitchem laughs at a reporters question to Tara about what it's like to play with a cross between Michael Jordan and Julia Roberts at a press conference following SMS's practice Thursday. Photo/Christina Dicken/News-Leader
Christina Dicken/News-Leader

Southwest Missouri State's Jackie Stiles, right, is comforted by her coach Cheryl Burnett late in the final moments of their 81-64 loss to Purder during their 2001 NCAA Women's Final Four semifinal game in St. Louis, Friday, March 30, 2001.
Michael Conroy/AP

Portland Fire guard Jackie Stiles sits on the bench holding her right wrist in a towel during their game against the Minnesota Lynx in Portland, Ore., Tuesday, June 18, 2002. A year ago she was the darling of the WNBA, the country girl who went from the NCAA's all-time scoring leader straight to rookie of the year. But it's been a dismal, injury-filled second year for Jackie Stiles, who's shooting 28 percent and averaging 7.3 points.
Don Ryan/AP

Missouri State University basketball legend Jackie Stiles, right, sits courtside for the Arkansas versus MSU basketball game and jokes with an on-court referee during the second half of their basketball game at JQH Arena on the Missouri State University campus in Springfield, Missouri, Saturday, November 22, 2008.
News-Leader file photo

Jackie Stiles shares her experiences of being a standout basketball athlete in high school, college and in the Women's Basketball Association as the featured speaker during the Women's Intersports Network Celebrating Girls and Women in Sports awards reception at University Plaza in Springfield, Missouri, October 1, 2008.
News-Leader file photo

Jackie Stiles shares her experiences of being a standout basketball athlete in high school, college and in the Women's Basketball Association as the featured speaker during the Women's Intersports Network Celebrating Girls and Women in Sports awards reception at University Plaza in Springfield, Missouri, October 1, 2008.
News-Leader file photo

Runners spring at the start of the 2010 Bass Pro Conservation Marathon and Half Marathon. Jackie Stiles, pictured just left of the flag on the bottom, was the women's half marathon winner.
News-Leader file photo

Katie Pritchard, a Waynesville High School senior and the News-Leader High School Athlete of the Year, poses for a of her athletics role model, Jackie Stiles, at theportrait beside the statueMissouri Sports Hall of Fame in Springfield, Missouri, Friday, June 20, 2008. Pritchard has a basketball scholarship to Drury University, but has also set a Class 2 record as a soccer player with over 250 career goals.
News-Leader file photo

Jackie Stiles, a former Missouri State superstar, is adjusting well to life after retiring from an illustrious career in women's basketball. After leading the Lady Bears to the Final Four in 2001, Stiles earned Rookie of the Year honors with the WNBA's Portland Fire before a variety of injuries forced her off the court. Stiles is photographed here in a playground at St. Agnes Elementary School, during a visit to Springfield where she was a featured speaker at the Women's Intersports Network award reception, on Wednesday, October 1, 2008.
File Photo

MSU Lady Bears legend Jackie Stiles waves to a crowd of supporters as she is introduced during half time of the Creighton Bluejays versus MSU Lady Bears basketball game at the JQH Arena on the Missouri State University campus in Springfield, Missouri, Friday, February 6, 2009.
News-Leader file photo

Stiles constantly talked to the team while she was away. Calip said it didn’t matter if Stiles was riding her bike or just relaxing and healing — she was talking to the team.

And it meant a lot to them, knowing she was there.

“She brings so much positivity to the team,” Danielle Gitzen said. “Obviously, she sent her positivity through text messages and stuff like that, but actually having her there… it just gives you a bigger cause and bigger thing to play for.”

But her physical presence means a lot to the team as well, and Harper believes being there for them means a lot to Stiles as well.

“Obviously it’s great to have Jackie back,” Harper said. “I know she’s thrilled to get back to some normalcy in her life.”

Lady Bears improve to 14-10 with win over Illinois State

Missouri State shot a season-high 55 percent against the nation's sixth-ranked field goal percentage defense Sunday afternoon, dispatching Illinois State by a 75-58 final at JQH Arena.

The Lady Bears improved to 14-10 overall and 10-3 in Missouri Valley Conference play with the program's 100th win at JQH in 10 seasons and 145 games, exceeding the previous high scoring total this season for an ISU opponent by 10 points, as the Redbirds (11-13, 5-8) entered the contest allowing 52.8 points on 33.9 percent shooting on the year.

The Lady Bears missed their first five shots, trailing 13-7 with 1:58 left in the first quarter before turning the offense around with a 24-for-39 shooting performance to close the game.

MSU makes its final Valley road trip of the season this coming weekend, beginning with a 7 p.m. Friday visit to Loyola.